InuYasha: Year 11
by MaggienToby
Summary: AU. Inuyasha is a grade 11 student and is forced to work together on a school project with a girl named Kagome. He doesn't care for school but she isn't about to let him ruin her grade! Follow Inuyasha and co. into a world with humans and demons living together in the modern day!
1. Chapter 1

InuYasha: Year 11

Chapter 1

 _The first day of school... and we already get assigned a project? Really?!_ Inuyasha groaned mentally as he heard the teacher lecture on and on about how they were all in grade 11 now and needed to be better at managing their time; drawing on his worksheet was something he hoped would help time pass. Staring at the boring oak bookshelves, gnawed desks and sleepy students only made time go even slower.

"I will be assigning partners to you all as some of you don't know how to get work done when hanging out with friends." The teacher narrowed his eyes at Koga and his friends in the back, who were making silly faces and not focused on the person of authority's words at all. Many groans were heard from the students, some dreading the idea of being partnered up with a slacker while others simply hated the idea of a project on the first day. Inuyasha was one of the latter students.

"First group, Miroku and Sango." The teacher said and Inuyasha looked at his friend, a black-haired male, who was smiling back at Inuyasha with a devious glint sparkling in his violet eyes.

 _Don't mess up your chance with this one, you pervert._ Inuyasha tried to convey in a look before getting back to doodling on his paper. They had met in grade 10, when Inuyasha first came to the school. He found his newfound friend to love women a little too much and got himself in trouble often thanks to it. It was surprising how many women hadn't outright rejected him, yelled at him, no... they were all very polite when it came to rejecting or accepting his tease. Miroku had a crush on Sango for as long as the young half-demon could remember.

"Looks like you're my partner!" He heard a female voice call from above and looked up to see her bright, smiling face looking down at him. She had long black hair that was a little messy but... like it was meant to look that way. Her eyes were a stormy blue, mixed with a grey that had them toned down from the usual blue-eyed beauty. "You're Inuyasha, right?" She asked, speaking politely again.

"Uh, yeah..." he glanced over her and to the teacher, realizing he had missed his name. Worse, he hasn't caught this girl's name. In fact, he didn't know her at all.

 _At least she's a human; I don't have to worry about her pulling anything funny on me._

"I'm Kagome, it's nice to meet you." Her eyes sparkled, and it was starting to make the male feel a little uncomfortable. People weren't usually this polite to him, so it was a little weird. Especially from a pretty girl.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." He mumbled and looked back down at his doodle on the corner of his page. He swore he heard the female huff but when he looked up to glare at her she was already walking away, to claim a desk diagonal from him. He didn't care where she sat, if she didn't bother him everything between them would be fine.

Why be polite to people you'll likely never see again?

 **/ / / TIME SKIP / / /**

The bell rang, meaning that the first day of school was over and Inuyasha could finally go home. There were a lot more humans at this school and therefore he wasn't teased nearly as badly as he was at his previous school. Sighing at the uneventful day, he grabbed his bag, tossed on his signature crimson hoodie and began to head home.

The sky was still a bright, vivid blue. The trees that were placed along the entrance to the school reached desperately for the blue of the sky, but never truly touched the blue void. Their leaves were varying shades of green, despite summer ending.

"Inuyasha!" He heard a familiar voice call after him. Turning around, he saw Kagome running after him. "I'm so glad I managed to catch you... I wanted to ask when you wanted to meet to discuss our project." Inuyasha's ears twitched, as if to confirm if he had heard her correctly.

"Already? It's not due for what, another two months?" He argued, confused on why the girl would ask about that now. She nodded.

"I know, but I like to stay ahead, you know?" She said cheerfully but Inuyasha scowled a little.

 _Great, I get stuck with a straight A student. Can't wait to get nagged about this._

"If you want, we could meet about it tomorrow when the teacher reveals more information about it." Kagome suggested and Inuyasha just shrugged in response, his amber gaze blank and uninterested.

"I really don't care." He said. "And I don't really do group projects." the girl simply tilted her head with a smile.

"They're not really my thing either, but we don't have a choice. Are you available tomorrow or not?" She asked once more and his ears leaned backwards; he didn't like the tone Kagome had even though she was right. Neither of them chose to be together.

"I'm available, geez." He huffed and glanced over Kagome's shoulder, eyes catching onto Miroku next to a tree with three girls talking to him.

"My place or yours, then?" Before she could spout anything else, the half-demon answered quickly.

"Yours." He spoke with more anger than he meant.

"It's settled, then! See you after school tomorrow." She seemed unphased and with that, she turned away to head home. Inuyasha's eyes narrowed at her, something about her screamed that she was putting on a whole nice facade.

"I see you've managed to nail a project with her..." he heard his friend say from behind him. "You're quite lucky, she's a pretty one." Inuyasha turned to face Miroku, a glare plastered on the white-haired male's face.

"Not interested." Inuyasha said, annoyed even at the thought. He had to admit, Kagome looked pretty and stood out thanks to that despite her wearing the same emerald skirt and white blouse every other girl wore. _Quit thinking like that!_ He growled at himself.

"Your face says otherwise." Miroku observed, spotting the bright pink his cheeks suddenly sported. Inuyasha huffed and faced away, pulling his hood up.

"Look, just because you're always chasing after girls doesn't mean everyone else is, too." Inuyasha's tone echoed his irritation, an ear flicking when he heard a chuckle from his friend.

"Whatever you say, Inuyasha."

* * *

Hey! Sorry for any OOC-ness, I kind of went with the thought process of, "they'd want to make a good first impression on a fresh year" but don't worry! I have the next few chapters written and Kagome is more of herself in the coming ones. I recently got into InuYasha and started to binge-watch the series because I fell in love with it; it's like Dragonball but a little better in some aspects.

I'd love to know if anyone wants me to continue posting this AU, as it's the first fan fiction I've tackled in a long time and I haven't written for a series I love so dearly in YEARS! Criticism welcomed and I look forward to posting more!


	2. Chapter 2

InuYasha: Year 11

Chapter 2

Another day, another half of it wasted by school. Inuyasha was to meet Kagome and go to her house to work on the project they both didn't want to do... but she hadn't told him where she'd be after school. He huffed in frustration just as Miroku came over to him, noticing his friend's annoyance as it was written all over his face.

"Lost Kagome?" He asked, one of his charming smiles plastered onto his face so any passing women would catch him and take interest. The white-haired male clicked his tongue.

"Did I really lose her if I never found her?" Inuyasha questioned. "It's her fault; she neglected to tell me where to meet her." He strained his ears to listen if he could find her by sound, but to no avail. Only the footsteps of students passing through were audible with unrecognizable voices sprinkled about.

"It was the first day, you can't really blame her for messing up. She was probably tired. Can't you use your nose to sniff her out?" Miroku suggested, pointing to Inuyasha's face with his gloved hand; it was wrapped in purple, black and blue cloth with sky-blue beads around it. It had a sort of mystical feel to it. Inuyasha's face scrunched up in distaste.

"Yeah, but I shouldn't have to." He whined, though he could smell Kagome's sweet scent. She had passed by here not long ago, probably looking for him. "What if I didn't have a strong sense of smell?"

"Stop making her put in all the effort, Inuyasha. Women like a strong man, trust me!" Miroku laughed, before noticing Sango heading out of the school. "Good luck with your hunt, catch you later!" He waved before rushing over to Sango for reasons Inuyasha didn't care for.

 _Fine, I'll go find her..._ with that, he began chasing after her scent trail which seemed to go around the whole school. As he began to approach the other side, his annoyance only grew as spotting her waiting just to the right of where he had started- she had circled the school prior to Inuyasha.

"Yo." He walked up to the girl with his hands in his hoodie's pockets casually. She looked annoyed and Inuyasha was about to snap at her before she spoke.

"Gah, sorry I'm an idiot, Inuyasha." She apologized, her frown never changing. His ears flicked once, making sure he heard that right. "I should've told you where to meet me. My bad." Her cheeks were dusted with a soft pink in embarrassment.

"Well, at least you're not blaming me..." Inuyasha muttered, more to himself than to the girl. "We found each other, so let's get going." She nodded and began to lead the way to her place.

The silence was a little uncomfortable; all that could be heard were the steps of the two and others chatting as they passed by. _Stop making her put in all the effort, Inuyasha_! Miroku's words echoed in his head making his ears flattened slightly under his hood.

"So, uh... you like it here?" He asked, observing the neighbourhood they were passing through. It didn't seem like a rich area, but it didn't seem poor either. She hummed a "mhm" as she continued in front of him.

"We're not too far from it now. I get home pretty early thanks to being a few blocks away." She grinned happily at him. He looked to the busy streets beside them.

 _I can get home quickly too, thanks to my speed._ He thought, grateful that he could leap onto the rooftops and race home to avoid traffic; subconsciously his sight focused on the roofs of the area.

"How far is your place?" She asked innocently, her tone indicating she was happy they had begun speaking.

"Uhh... well, if I walked there I would probably get home around 5 or 5:30." He rubbed his chin with a clawed finger. "But because I'm half demon, I can speed over there." _Thankfully._ He clarified. Kagome nodded. There was no point in hiding the fact that he was only a mere half-breed; if he didn't reveal it now, one of the demons would sniff it out of him and reveal it to Kagome at school. Than his chances at being on decent terms with her would surely be over and both of them didn't want to suffer more than they already had to thanks to the project.

"You're lucky. I know a few students have to walk a distance like that." But her eyes widened as if she had suddenly realized something. Inuyasha looked at her, confusion clear on his face as they continued to walk.

"What?" He asked.

"Well, I just realized... you weren't here in year 10, right? What made you switch?" Kagome asked, genuine perplex her face. "Especially when you're so far away." She clarified her question. His ears flattened entirely and he was thankful they were hidden by his hoodie; being relatively unreadable was something he enjoyed for whatever reason.

"I just wanted a change." He lied through his teeth but was unphased; it was none of her business. Kagome accepted his answer with a nod before gesturing him to follow her to her house's entrance. He blinked, realizing he had been walking so absentmindedly that he had neglected to notice they had headed into her home property.

"Here it is. Not too long a walk, eh?" She smiled before heading inside. Inuyasha nodded, his ears remained flattened with embarrassment and a small blush appeared on his cheeks, barely visible. No one had introduced him to their parents before.

"Do you live alone?" He asked awkwardly, after a few quiet moments passed. She shrugged, turning to face him and the male was thankful his embarrassment had faded.

"My mom's a busy woman, she has to support my younger brother and I, after all. My grandpa lives with us too, but he's likely out at the shrine." Kagome said as she pointed upstairs. "My room's just up there, if you want to start right away." Kagome said as she began to hop up the stairs quickly, her black hair bouncing behind her.

"Coming." He called after her, matching her speed easily. She turned to face him and let out a squeak, falling over out of shock. He blinked, holding back a laugh. "What's wrong with you?" The half-demon asked.

"You just... surprised me, that's all. Didn't expect you to be so fast." her blue eyes shone in awe, before she stood back up and gestured to her room. She opened the door and Inuyasha's nose was assaulted with her scent, a little overwhelming for him. He almost stumbled backwards! She didn't hesitate to walk in, and he followed suit, a bead of sweat forming on the side of his head.

"Huh... unsurprising." He mumbled as he noticed her room was relatively tidy, bed made and books organized. She tilted her head at him in confusion. "Uhm, just, I expected someone like you to be tidy." He admitted shyly, glancing out of her bedroom window.

"Ah, I see. I try to be, I don't like to be behind on school work so organization is very important! Which reminds me..." she pointed her finger at him, glaring slightly. "I know you don't like to pay attention in class but I'm not about to fail a big project just because I was forced to work with you!" She exclaimed, having observed that he was usually too busy doodling on his papers to pay attention to the lessons in school. He glared back at her, blue meeting yellow.

"I didn't exactly want to be paired up with you either!" Inuyasha huffed, though clearly he would benefit from having a partner that was hardworking and good at school. She crossed her arms.

"I'm just letting you know, I'm not going to do all the work; I'll do what I have to do in order to get a passing grade for myself. I'm not carrying you!" Kagome shouted back, her sky eyes burning like bright flames.

"Well, you got me here, didn't you?!" He huffed, crossing his arms and looking to her door with his amber eyes. "I wouldn't have come if all you were going to do was yell at me." Kagome frowned and her eyes softened.

"I... didn't mean to. I notice you kind of drift off in class, so I figured I should make myself _very_ clear on what I intend to get done." She clarified her actions far more softly. Inuyasha's ear twitched and he huffed at her.

"We gonna start then, or what?" His voice still had that aggressive tone to it. Kagome smiled at him and nodded, pulling out the piece of paper she had recorded her ideas on.

 _Great, she's going to be a handful._

* * *

Hello again everyone! I'm very glad people are interested in where this story is going to go and I'm sorry for the boring chapter. I'll be honest, this chapter is probably my least favorite I've written... but fear not, one of my favorites is next in line! I've added a cover and as far as I can tell, it's official art. The only thing I've done is add a filter but otherwise, the image does not belong to me.

I'll also be responding to reviews at the bottom of each chapter if I feel like doing so 3

the well: Thank you! I hope I can keep your interest throughout the story!

SorceressOfTheMists: Thanks! I haven't written something in a long time so here's hoping I've still got it :')


	3. Chapter 3

InuYasha: Year 11

Chapter 3

It had been the first week of school and Friday evening was just setting in. Inuyasha breathed the warm air that came with it, appreciating the heat. When the sky darkened it was sure to cool down quickly. He sat comfortably on the roof of his house, towards his backyard so he wouldn't be spotted by passerby's.

 _Bzzt!_ His cellphone vibrated next to him. Grabbing it with his hand, be noticed a message from Kagome, his project partner in school. They had exchanged numbers Tuesday, to make sure a repeat event of chasing each other down didn't happen.

"Hey! Up to much?" Her text read. He hadn't really texted anyone before, but he hoped he wouldn't be too awkward around his new friend... after all, he was stuck with her for a few months.

"Not really. Why do you care?" He texted her back before closing his phone and placing it down again. The girl was very persistent in talking to him and it was kind of weird; even his friend, Miroku, didn't talk to him this much.

 _Sometimes I wonder why I'm friends with that guy..._ He was taken out of thought by more buzzing.

"Just a question, geez." Followed by, "I was going to ask if you wanted to come with me and my friend, Shippo, to get some ice cream tomorrow." Inuyasha's mouth involuntarily watered at the thought of some ice cream. He hadn't had any in years and was itching to get his claws on some.

"Huh, alright. But I'm only coming for the food." He sent her back, getting a quick response from her.

"Understood." As his eyes travelled over the single word his ears flattened slightly. It felt strange, unnatural, getting such a blunt response from her. She was talkative to him, usually.

 _Bzzt!_ There his phone went again.

"The girl in front of me has a really nice bottom."

 _Why would Kagome say that?_ His brow furrowed harshly as he frantically unlocked his phone to see if he had missed a notification.

 _...oh, it's just Miroku._ Inuyasha noted and felt disappointment grip at his heart, something that rattled at his brain. _Do I actually_ want _her to talk to me?_ He growled at himself, no, of course he didn't! He didn't value her time or company!.. Right? He decided to put the phone on Do Not Disturb, so he would avoid any further texts and notifications.

/ / /

"This is Shippo! Shippo, this is Inuyasha! He's a friend from school." She grinned to the small demon at her feet. Inuyasha almost chuckled at how tiny he was! His orange tail was about as big as his body and the fact that his hair was of a different shade compared to the fluffiness behind the small boy annoyed the half-demon some. His hair was in a small ponytail tied high by a teal bow; it matched his undershirt. His overcoat matched his tail fur and his poofy pants were the colour of the night sky, looking a little ridiculous with two tiny fox legs poking out of them.

Inuyasha felt like he looked more like a full demon when standing close to Shippo.

"Nice to meet you, Inuyasha!" The fox demon grinned.

"Same to you, Shippo." He said before looking around the area. "So, where's this ice cream place?" He didn't know of any such place nearby. Shippo pipped up from below.

"It's probably a 30 minute walk in that direction." He pointed with his tiny fingers. Inuyasha huffed, annoyed. "Generally depends on traffic." The fox demon shrugged. Inuyasha wasn't the patient type and he certainly wasn't about to let traffic prevent him from getting a quick treat.

"That settles it then. Kagome, Shippo, get on my back." He kneeled. Kagome stared at him in disbelief, and Shippo in confusion. _What?_ A slight blush formed on Kagome's cheeks. "Well?" Inuyasha's eyes narrowed.

"Uhh... why?" She questioned him, her tone clear with confusion.

"Because it'll be faster." He growled. "I want my damn ice cream." His bluntness had Kagome covering her mouth to prevent herself from laughing too much; it was such a funny thing to hear from a guy like him.

"If you really think you can get us there faster, sure, but..." Shippo stared up at the traffic light with his big blue eyes full of sadness. "You'd still have to wait for the traffic lights." And Inuyasha let out a "keh".

"Just get on my back." He repeated himself from below. Kagome shrugged, her light blush remaining on her face as she walked up to him and awkwardly got on. "There. Was that so hard?" He asked rhetorically, before leaping up to the air and running on the rooftops. Shippo watched in awe.

"Wow, Inuyasha! You're smarter than I thought!" The small fox demon cheered.

"Watch your mouth, I am your way there and back after all." He teased Shippo, who was quick to shut up.

"Don't worry, Shippo. I wouldn't let him abandon you." Kagome reassured her friend and he smiled happily, letting out a small giggle.

"Like you could stop me!" Inuyasha chuckled.

 _Laughed... I laughed?_ Inuyasha blinked a few times as he continued to run, taken aback by his sudden outburst.

"You should see her when she gets mad!" Shippo said, sounding terrified. "I think you'd fall to your knees!"

"Hey!" Kagome huffed back to the Kitsune. "What's that supposed to mean?!" She demanded, although a smirk was on her face indicated she was only joking.

It wasn't long before they had arrived at the place and gotten their ice cream. In Inuyasha's hand, he was devouring a vanilla cone; it was his favorite flavor as he was a simple man. Kagome had chocolate with sprinkles on hers, delicately licking away at the delicious treat. Shippo took strawberry in a waffle cone, his usual. Sometimes the young Kitsune would try new flavours and different combinations but today he had felt the need for his favorite.

"I'm guessing you like it, Inuyasha." Kagome giggled, noting that he was at the cone part of the ice cream while her and Shippo hadn't even managed to leave a dent into the delicious cream yet. He only nodded as he continued to devour the treat.

"I'm glad you like it, Inuyasha. Kagome and I eat here lots." The small demon smiled as his hair blew in the slight wind. "We'll have to bring you along more often, considering you can get us here so fast!" Shippo began to laugh and Inuyasha glared down harshly at the boy before he heard Kagome laugh, too.

"It's a nice bonus, Inuyasha." She pulled away from her treat to give him a small smile. "Thanks for coming with us, and getting us here so fast." He simply "keh"'d and didn't say anything else.

They all decided to walk back to Kagome's place, enjoy the last bits of their ice cream; it would all blow away if they rode on Inuyasha's back again. Kagome breathed in deeply after taking a bite of the cone.

"What's up?" Inuyasha asked.

"Just happy." She said gently and Shippo nodded in agreement. Inuyasha could feel the sides of his mouth perk up. He had enjoyed the outing, too, short as it had been. She had a warm glow to her not many others had and Shippo, while a pain in the ass, was friendly. "What are you both doing once we get back?" She asked, curiously.

"Well," Shippo pondered for a moment, bringing a tiny finger to his chin. "I've gotta help out Kaede, the sooner I get there the better." he sighed. "Told my dad I would." Kagome nodded in understanding.

"You had mentioned that... see you, Shippo." She waved and Inuyasha watched as Shippo went his own way, further from them across an unfamiliar street. "Inuyasha? What about you?" Kagome questioned.

"Uh, nothing really." His days were usually spent alone, with nothing particular to do. It left him with a lot of time to do nothing.

"Would you want to hang out with me, then?" She offered, her raven hair blowing behind her beautifully in the wind. His amber eyes watched it, mesmerized a little. The half-demon snapped out of it as soon as he realized what time at her place would imply.

"I'm a bit sick of the project. I've had enough of it for one week." He groaned, dreading the stupid thing and Kagome shook her head vigorously.

"No, no! I meant... just, hanging out. Doing nothing." She paused for a moment. "Together."

 _Together? Hmm._ He pondered the thought. It was better than dealing with his father back at home and if it wasn't going to be about the project it was bound to be a good time, as their outing had proved.

"Sure," he answered. "I'll stop by for a few."

* * *

Hey again everyone! Hope you enjoyed the cute fluff this chapter offered up.

I'm very sorry I got back to this so late... I meant to upload it Friday but life got in the way. Long story short, I have 3 upcoming projects and that's only for ONE class. Got my hands tied down for the time being, sadly... BUT! I'll hopefully update by the end of the week. This story is really fun to write and I'm liking it so far. This is one of my favorite chapters only for the interaction between Kagome, Inuyasha and Shippo.

Starfire95: Glad you're enjoying it, I'll try to stay on a schedule when it comes to updates.

the well: Awh, you're giving me too much credit for only 3 chapters! The meaty stuff comes later on ;D

Dina: Happy to hear it!

Again, please don't hesitate to give your thoughts, feelings, suggestions... All will be considered for the most part. :)


	4. Chapter 4

InuYasha: Year 11

Chapter 4

"I said, what's your locker number?" Kagome repeated herself to her seemingly confused classmate, Inuyasha. He tilted his head at her question; something that made him appear far cuter than he'd ever know.

"What do you need that for?" His tone innocent in nature.

"So I can pick you up for lunch!" Kagome chirped happily, lightly clapping her hands together while a stupid smile was plastered onto her face. Inuyasha's ears pushed forward and his eyes lit up a little, though his expression was his usual. It was the third week of school and the two new friends had been hanging out with each other for the company more than the schoolwork.

"You want to have lunch with me?" He narrowed his eyes at her, studying for any sign of deceit in her facial expression, ears raised to catch any falter in her voice. She smiled and leaned back a bit, nodding her head.

"That's what friends do, isn't it?" Kagome asked rhetorically before continuing. "I never see you with anyone around lunch time, so I didn't think you'd mind the offer." There was no harm in asking, after all. Inuyasha's scowl didn't fade, however, and he grumbled out an answer as he looked away.

"It's 156. You don't need to force yourself to hang out with me, y'know..." he heard the girl huff as she crossed her arms.

"Quit thinking I'm a saint! Maybe I actually enjoy our time together?!" She seemed a little hurt by his remark; the male could hear it in Kagome's tone. Inuyasha was going to turn around and respond but the heated girl beat him to it. "If you don't want to hang out, don't wait by your locker." With that, she faded away into the crowd of students.

 _She's not sick of me yet?_ His ears flattened. They had gotten a project together and he thought that was really all their bond was; something school had forced them to do together. Sure, they hung out, but he thought she was trying to make this bearable for the both of them. Or maybe Kagome really liked him. That thought had him smile subconsciously.

 _BRIIING!_ The bell rang, signaling that the next class was beginning and Inuyasha would be late no matter what he did. He had been lost in thought that he hadn't realized he was the only student left in the classroom, the teacher giving him a scowl as he packed his things away. The same teacher that had paired he and Kagome together. That guy always had something to complain about.

 **/ / / LUNCH TIME / / /**

His locker rang out with a bang as Inuyasha harshly leaned into it accidentally, expression bored and uninteresting, though it did hurt to hear how loud the sound was.

"Mind keeping it down, mutt?" He heard a familiar voice growl to him. Inuyasha scowled, eyes darting to Koga's locker which was diagonal from him. He "keh"'d, but said nothing to the wolf demon. Koga's eyes narrowed at him, suspicion growing in his eyes. "Besides, what are you doing here? You're usually off somewhere else."

"Like it's any of your business." Inuyasha huffed as he turned his attention to where Kagome should be approaching from. He was getting a little worried that she wasn't going to show up after all; but could he really blame her? Just as the terrifying thought entered his mind, she came into sight through the sea of passing students. Her neutral expression becoming one of surprise as soon as she realized Inuyasha had waited; her eyes were wide and her mouth slightly agape.

"Inu...Inuyasha?" She whispered softly, silently, if the male had been a human her words would've escaped him. Relief washed over the half-demon, whom began to approach her. "You waited around for me?"

"You had said you wanted lunch." Inuyasha replied cooly, lifting up a paper bag that presumably had his lunch stored inside. Kagome's face lit up as a smile spread to her cheeks, a slight blush dusting her face. Inuyasha suddenly felt his own cheeks flush slightly, thanks to her adorable expression. He couldn't be more grateful for his tanned complexion; without it, people might notice his pinkish cheeks.

"Oh, Inuyasha... thank you." She managed to say, continuing to smile almost proudly to the male. His ears twitched. "Thank you for waiting. Shall we find a place to eat?" Kagome asked eagerly, the delicious smells of the food around them only enticing the girl more. He felt a bit of a smile creep onto his face, her gratitude not going unappreciated. As the two turned to walk past Koga, Inuyasha felt the greatest satisfaction when the look of pure confusion was clear as day on the wolf demon's face.

They settled in the front yard of the school, under the cool shade of a powerful, sturdy oak tree. Its branches were massive and the leaves left a lot of shade for kids to take; the tree must've been ages old. The two teenagers began to munch on their lunches, the silence calming and comfortable. It was nice.

"How's the day treated you?" Kagome asked after swallowing the last bite of her food, effectively ending the silence. Inuyasha shrugged just as he was about to finish his own meal.

"Usual. You?" He responded as he leaned back and into the tree, the shade refreshing and cool. The half-demon closed his eyes.

"It's been average... not bad or good." She grinned. "Though, there was one part of it that stuck out to me..." she brought a finger to her chin. Inuyasha opened one eye to look over at her.

"Oh..?" He mumbled, genuinely curious as to who or what she could be talking about.

 _I wish it were me._ His ears almost flattened. _Wait, what? Why do I care?_ Kagome had been incredibly patient and friendly to Inuyasha, one of the few who he would happily call a friend. Yet, he had a yearning for more he kept trying to bury.

"I wasn't expecting this guy to like me..." she began and Inuyasha already dreaded where this was going; he didn't need to hear about this. "But apparently he likes me more than I thought." Her smile grew and Inuyasha internally flinched.

"Oh, that's nice." He tried to respond like his usual self, cool and blunt. _Of course_ someone as beautiful and easy to work with would find someone. He just wished he didn't care. He shouldn't care, should he?

"You know who it is, don't you?" Kagome asked, leaning over to him slightly and breaking him out of his thoughts. Her smile was now much smaller than it was before. Inuyasha turned his upper body to look at her with a glare.

"Why would I know? I don't track you every moment of every day." He snapped, more harshly than he meant. His words were partly true; he would sometimes smell her to figure out who she had been with that day. Most of the time she hung out with some girlfriends of hers... their names? He didn't care to remember. Her smile faded to a frown and her brow furrowed.

"I was talking about you, genius..." Kagome huffed, leaning back into her spot and looking at Inuyasha, a bit annoyed.

"I wouldn't want to assume!" He protested, but she laughed at him.

"Hasn't stopped you before," her brow softened and her face became more neutral. "Look, I'm real touched you waited. It meant a lot." She grinned to him as she stood up. Inuyasha was confused for a moment, about to get up himself and follow her.

"Sure, but, where are you-" _Oh._ Kagome stepped over to him and sat next to him, their sides touching. The male half-demon felt his cheeks tinge pink, looking over at her somewhat softly with a tiny smile. She giggled.

"Someone's awfully happy I moved closer~!" She looked at him playfully and he laughed a little.

"Oh, shut up." He teased. She looked so cute when she was confident... and Inuyasha was starting to understand what was developing.

He only hoped it wouldn't cause a rift in their friendship.

* * *

IT BEGINS. Hellooo everyone! Sorry for such a delay, I've been having a really rough week and only yesterday was it really starting to look up. Got sick, was stressed out from both work and school... Just a nightmare. I'm also applying for some scholarships, so I have to save a lot of time writing up my stuff for that. Regardless, I hope you enjoy this adorable chapter!

Starfire95 - Hehe, thanks! I thought that might get a few laughs. I don't normally write humourous things so I'm glad I nailed it there ;D

Kakau - Aww, really? Ya think that? That's great to hear, I try to have an interesting and well-written story... And I know my style of writing isn't for everyone out there. But so far lots seemed to have enjoyed it!

As always, feel free to leave suggestions for me / give me your opinions on my story! I love reading your reviews!


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